not about being asleep at midnight.

Letting out a big sigh, but staying positive

2015-08-21T12:26:00.001+08:00

I miss traveling. The Malaysian economy & my own personal economy has been very bad this year. I've only been to Indonesia once. And twice to the same destination - Langkawi.

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love my country. I don't mind to travel local, but that's just it. I don't even travel locally. Usually I'd go to Indonesia about 3-4 times a year for food, shopping & just chill out. And I'm running out of photos to post to my Instagram account.

*Sigh*

I hope everything's going to be better, altho right about now it doesn't seem like it's going to.

Langkawi - April 2015

2015-08-17T14:29:00.001+08:00

It's been a while since I last updated. Laziness happened. And also an all-girls trip to Langkawi (again!). And I still have not written about my 1st trip there.

So anyway, for my 1st trip to Langkawi (this year) in April, I went with my Mum & aunt, Makton. 3D2N and we stayed at 2 different hotels. I wanted to spend 2 nights in Berjaya Resort, but it was kinda out of my budget range. We get a rental car, RM130 for a Perodua Viva. It's the smallest car just to fit the 3 of us & 2 luggages. And the price was slightly low because it was not a peak season.

We arrived early, about 10am. So we went to the jetty first. I wanted to take picture of the eagle. "Helang", in Malay. As in "Lang", part of the name of the island. Lots of tourists, and they had some kind of filming about to go on. Then we headed Haji Ismain Group in Kuah town for some shopping.

Dataran Lang

The women of Malaysia loves to shop here, I tell ya. They sell imported chocolates, cultery, pots & pans, trolley bags, etc. And it's cheaper because Langkawi is a duty-free area. They do have cigars, cigarettes, wines on the island, easily found if you go to the duty-free shopping malls by the jetty or The Zon in Pantai Chenang.

Our first hotel was Alia Residence. I booked through Expedia for RM128 per night for 3 person. They were kind enough to give us an upgrade from an extra mattress to an extra bed.

Our room. 1 double bed & 1 single bed.

The hotel was clean, reception was of course very nice & helpful. Their pool is always open but I didn't jump in. Location of the hotel is just OK for me. It didn't have a nice view (ours was overlooking other houses & trees next to the hotel) and there doesn't seem to have any nearby shops. It's on the quieter side, I guess. But, as I was only there to relax with my family, I'd say it's a nice place to stay. Breakfast was not a buffet, they'll have you choose from a menu, but this is OK by me too. They do have bread, juices & fruits on the small buffet area.

Pool

Clean surroundings

View from the back of the hotel

View from our room

That evening we just went around the island. Went for more shopping @ Kuah, then headed to Beras Terbakar, then drove up to Tanjung Rhu for an evening view. But it was raining, so I guess no sunset for the day.

We checked out at 12pm the next day and headed towards the airport. There's this area behind the airport where mostly Malaysians like to hang out. There's a few food vendors open up their trucks for some "pasembor", "laksa" and other local food. It's an island, so naturally, you know you'll be sitting under trees & by the beach. The view you'll get here is Gunung Mat Cincang - where Berjaya Hotel & Langkawi Cable Car are. And from time to time, you'll get to see airplanes land. I really like to hang out here.

Us having laksa & pasembor

View from the beach

When time came for us to check in, we headed to our next hotel, Berjaya. The Danna was on the way, so we saw yachts. I came to Berjaya a few years ago on my own, and I love it there. So now I had my Mum & aunt with me, I wanted to show them how beautiful this hotel & it's surrounding are. There was a large crowd at the lobby as it was a peak time for checking in & out. And you can only take the hotel buggies to go to & from your room to other parts of the hotel.

In front of our room

Our room.

Please excuse the mess

Our room was in the forest. Smaller than the room I stayed in when I was alone, but excellent nonetheless. After checking in & settling down, we head over to Langkawi Cable Car. The hotel provides free shuttle so it was the easiest! Makton is afraid of heights, so did not look anywhere. Shut her eyes & told me that that will be her first & last time going on it. Oh, poor Makton! Hehe. Mak was enjoying the view, taking pictures. She's cool about it, although she too, said the same thing.

View as we go up the mountain

View from the cable car

View from top of the mountain

It was a hot evening, so we had a clear view of Langkawi & the sea. They were having a renovation going on, so tourists were occupied to only 1 side of the lookout point. I wanted to go onto the Sky Bridge, as I did a few years ago. Registered, paid RM5 & walked my way down. It's a 450m hike and I managed to go until about 200m when I fell like dying. If I were to continue, I literally would die out there, in the forest, where there's a signboard that says they'll be hogs & snakes. Nobody in their right mind would want that! And so I climbed back up, with my lungs about to burst and covered in sweat from head to toe. Thank goodness I've been there once, in my 20s when I still have the energy.

The hike to get to the Sky Bridge

I was the happiest to reunite with the bed back at the hotel afterwards. I called up Pahn-Thai Restaurant to make reservation for us during sunset. The restaurant is above the water and have an excellent view of the sun going down behind the mountain.

The walk to Pahn-Thai Restaurant

Unfortunately, it rained heavily. I didn't want to cancel, so after the rain we went out to enjoy what's left of the view. But it was still a nice, cool evening. Food was not great. It's not that it's bad-tasting, but the portion's too little but it's way too pricey. The three of us had sweet & sour fish, green curry chicken & somtam. Plus our drinks, everything totalled up to RM230.

View from Pahn-Thai restaurant

Nighttime at the lobby

Going on a trip with the elders means the only night activity is sleep. So we had some rest & woke up early the next day to enjoy our buffet breakfast. They had a promotion, so the extra person only costs us about RM40+. It was a good deal since they have a lot to offer at breakfast. And we had a little bit of everything. After that we just went chilling by the hotel beach & checked out at 12pm.

Me, while waiting for the buggy

The pool

Private beach @ Berjaya Hotel

View from the beach

Entrace to Berjaya Hotel

My friend's mom is a Berjaya shareholder, so we had a voucher that gave a special price. Our room cost us around RM330++ per night. It's another good deal, I'd say. So our total spending in Berjaya is just a few Ringgit more of RM600.

Pantai Kok

Our flight was at 3pm, so we chilled out at a small beach beside The Danna, went out to get food from the food trucks again & then to airport where we handed back the car keys. Of course, I had to purchase extra baggage allowance because we had almost emptied out the store at Haji Ismail.

Tanjung Rhu, after the rain

All in, I really enjoyed this trip. We had loads of fun driving around the island. It's a nice place to enjoy with family & friends. But if you're looking for a party scene, this is not the place for you. Langkawi gives a very laid-back & chilled-out environment - good for relaxation.

The greens of Langkawi

2015-05-27T10:54:00.000+08:00

View from Berjaya Resort Langkawi. Which will be in the next post, about my birthday trip to Langkawi.

I love Langkawi. It's so chilled-out, it's green & the sands on the beaches are smooth & white. It's just awesome to take a break once in a while to this island up in Kedah.

The Pearl Of The Orient - Penang.

2015-05-26T11:20:00.001+08:00

Been busy lately with work, my own travels, organizing family's travels & what-nots. So here's about a trip I had with a friend, back in February. Not too long ago, tho. I can still remember.

We went to Penang Island, up in the northern part of Peninsular Malaysia. Just a 2D1N stay, as a friend of mine received a free stay at a hotel there.

Since it was a short trip, we decided to take a flight from KUL - PEN on AirAsia. Parked my car at the airport & board a 9am flight. You may want to check out this site for more parking info & price rate at KLIA2.

Of my 32 years of living in Malaysia (I've never lived anywhere else anyway), that was my 1st time at Penang International Airport. I've been to Penang quite a number of times before, but never on a plane. It's a 5-6 hour drive form KL.

It was a Saturday, so traffic in Penang was good. Our hotel name was Noordin Mews. A boutique hotel in Georgetown. Read the reviews here from Tripadvisor - and believe everybody's review, please. I thought the hotel was awesome.

Noordin Mews Boutique Hotel

Art at the side of the hotel

We arrived early, way before check-in time. So we put the bags at the hotel & walk to the nearest mall - 1st Avenue Mall. Went for an early lunch, shopping & hanging out at Starbucks just to kill time before noon.

Back at the hotel, our room was ready. The hotel was only double-story, and our room was upstairs right at the end, looking down at their restaurant & pool. Instead of the usual numbers for rooms, this hotel labelled them in alphabets. Ours was "M".

Our room

Nostalgia

Everything was kept simple & traditional, and they even had wooden doors. The keys & locks are huge & bulky. The room was cooling, they had a fan & an air-cond. There's a day bed across the TV, but unfortunately for me (I don't sleep easily, so I need TV for help) it wasn't facing the bed.

After we had our rest, we went out to find a bus stop/station to get us to Penang Hill. It really has been more than a decade ago since I last step foot on that hill. We decided to take the bus because from our last trip, we learned that Penang has an awesome bus system - Rapid Penang.

Komtar bus station

Bus info

They have this huge timetable at the Komtar bus station telling us where our bus is currently & the ETA. We waited for a bout half-an-our before our bus came. The ride from Komtar to Penang Hill cost us RM2 per person. You can check their route map, schedule & fares here. It probably wasn't that far, but there's quite a big traffic, and I had to stand all the way. At this age, standing in an awkward position for at least 40mins in a crowded bus was not doing any good to my feet AND my back.

It wasn't a peak season, so there wasn't a crowd. If you are a Malaysian with MyKad, it'll be RM10 and foreigners pay RM30. Check out their pricing here. The train has now upgraded, was quite fast to reach the top. Nothing awesome up there except for the view, I guess. The view was simply breathtaking. We snapped a whole lot of pictures.

View of Penang island

View of Penang bridge

Then we just laze around, people-watching & just walk slowly to enjoy a nice evening out in the fresh air. By the time we get down to the main entrace, I had lost all my energy & I literally can hear my bones crack. So we booked a cab - oh side track to promo this app - GrabTaxi (MyTeksi). It is superb, I tell ya! I've used it twice and I loved it.

We had mutton & chicken

Kapitan Keling Mosque

The driver recommended us a restaurant somewhere in Little India area. Had our dinner & walked back. We passed by Kapitan Keling Mosque, it was very bright.

It was definitely a tiring day for me. And when we reach the hotel, I had the best bath ever. I don't know why but I love the bathroom @ Noordin Mews! The shower was good, the shower gell, shampoo, conditioner.. everything was perfect. And of course, they provide a hair dryer so yeah.. just to add to my superb bathing experience. *grin*

The bathroom

Rain shower

Next day, we had our breakfast first thing. I had an English breakfast with coffee. Superb! The restaurant was small, so we didn't stay long.

Then we walked to Chowrasta Market to buy some stuff for family & friends at home. And yeah, I guess that's about it for my Penang trip. Wasn't much as it was only a 1-night stay. But it'll do. As long as we get to go out from KL for a bit.

KLCC @ sunset

2015-05-24T18:07:00.000+08:00

A view of sunset over KLCC, taken last week from my apartment.

Sunny @ Bali

2015-04-01T13:19:00.000+08:00

A photo of myself in Bali. A hot & sunny afternoon by the beach. Was on the phone with my mum :)

Kuching, Sarawak.

2015-03-31T16:51:00.001+08:00

Sarawak State Legislative Assembly building, located in Kuching, Sarawak - the capital and most populous city in Sarawak.

Went there with my family in 2009. We stayed in Harbour View Hotel, just opposite Kuching Waterfront. So finding food and a place to hang-out was no problem to us.

And we hanged-out at the waterfront a whole lot! We get to watched a man dressed in a traditional Iban costume, playing "sape" - a traditional Iban's instrument.

And at night, there was cultural performances.

There's a boat service that takes you across the river, which only takes about 5 minutes or so. On the other side, there's a big food court where you can find great Sarawakian food like Sarawak laksa & Kolok mee.

The people of Kuching are very friendly. They are very generous when it comes to smiling. Didn't go exploring the forest, "rumah panjang" & all the authentic features of Sarawak. Maybe we'll go again next time.

Can't remember much of this trip, but I remember that I enjoyed myself hanging out at the waterfront. Going on & off the boat and smiling at every Sarawakian bcoz they are just so friendly. Can't say anything about the hotel or restaurants or even kek lapis bcoz my memory of them are only barely touching the surface.

I miss it, though. It was a good trip with my family.

Superhot Morning @ Mount Bromo

2015-03-30T13:52:00.000+08:00

View from the top of Mount Bromo. Took us quite some time to get to the top - we weren't fit, so had to make a lot of breaks along the way. Didn't wanna get down, but the hot sun was burning the skin.

Photo was taken in 2009. When oh when can I go there again?

Sunset @ Santika Premiere Beach Resort Bali

2015-03-24T12:21:00.000+08:00

Spent my birthday in the year 2012 in Bali. Had a very relaxing 3 days by Kuta Beach.

The hotel was awesome. It was nearby a busy road & the airport, but once you are inside the area, the noise disappears. The staff was very helpful & friendly, the food was good, the 2 swimming pools are comforting.

The picture was taken at my favorite spot in the hotel - the walkway to the beach. :)

For more information on the hotel & reservation, go to their website or check out their review on Tripadvisor

Sightseeing @ Cape Rachado

2015-03-23T17:03:00.000+08:00

After Portugal conquered Malacca in 1511, the Portuguese wanted to build a lighthouse to guide its ships. Tanjung Tuan was chosen and the cape was named Cape Rachado by them. Subsequently, a lighthouse was built between 1528 and 1529. As Malacca switched hands to the Dutch and later to the British in 1641 and 1824 respectively, so too did the possession of the structure.
(Source : Wikipedia)

There's a forest reserve that surrounds the area. It was a refreshing walk for us. Calm & quiet. Not too quiet tho, you can hear the birds chirping.

It was quite a walk through the forest & up the hill. The view from up above was nice. I wouldn't say magnificent, tho. But you'll be staring out at the open sea, and down below you'll see the white waves hitting the shores.

After all the sweats, the best way to end your day is to have some "air batu campur" or ABC, with a bowl of "rojak" & "pisang goreng" by the roadside, with a bunch of crazy cousins. The Malaysian street food, the Malaysian culture.

Kuala Lumpur : Petronas Twin Towers

2015-03-20T15:40:00.000+08:00

The Petronas Twin Towers, located in Kuala Lumpur City Center - KLCC in short, is my favorite building of all. It's one of the tallest twin building in the world, and it's in the city that I live in.

During weekends, the KLCC park is filled with people - the locals hanging out or bringing their children to the playground, the foreigners busy taking picture and being amazed by this majestic building.

Taken during Chinese New Year

Koryo-Won, a Korean restaurant at the top floor

To us KLites, the best place to meet up would be at the Suria shopping center. A bit of a high-end mall, but there are some affordable things to choose from. And of course, the store I love most - Kinokuniya.

There's a whole lot of stores with various brands to choose from. There's also a cinema, Petrosains (a science center, perfect for kids) and most importantly, a variety of restaurants and food to choose from! Malaysian, Indonesian, Western, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese - you name it, they have it.

And at night, this building looks simply magnificent!

For more info, browse thru the official website of Petronas Twin Towers, here. KLCC area is also a stone's throw away from Bukit Bintang. There is, in fact, an air-conditioned walkway from KLCC Convention Center & Pavillion mall.

It's the ultimate shopping experience in Kuala Lumpur. A must-see, must-do thing if you are in KL.

Monsters do PD

2015-03-14T17:02:00.000+08:00

Port Dickson, 1st August 2009 - Teluk Kemang beach was under attack by 7 monsters on Saturday morning.

The 6 monsters, plus 1 taking the picture

They bought food and drinks and stayed around for a few hours for a picnic and some gruesome action in the beach. They were nowhere to be seen in the area when the rain pours down again around noon.

After an hour of peace, they were being seen again in PD area. Reported by some witnesses, they then roamed over the firehouse at Tanjung Tuan for some uphill view of the sea.

The monsters going thru the woods in Tanjung Tuan

While they were lost in the woods, people in the area can feel the grounds shaking. A witness said that they were taking pictures.

"Yes, I saw them with my own eyes! They were trying to take jumping pictures. It was ugly.", said Ali, the cleaner at the area.

Around 5pm, they were seen heading back towards Sepang, but stopped by PD Town to attack a mamak stall at the roadside.

"They ate all my cendol, ABC, rojak, cincau drinks and goreng pisang!", claimed Mutu, the stall owner. "But thanks to them, my business was really good that day. I get to close early and spend time at home with my children", he added with a grateful smile.

Port Dickson is now in peace as the monsters are gone. The people of PD can sleep soundly from now on.

Lonely Langkawi

2015-03-12T23:34:00.000+08:00

Another post taken from my old blog, of a trip by myself, on my birthday, to Langkawi. Back in April 2011. You might wanna open up Google Translate while reading this post (if you don't understand Malay language).

I stayed in Berjaya Langkawi Resort. A bit far from the airport, so I arranged with the hotel for a pickup. Hotel website here.

View from Thai Restaurant where I had my dinner the 1st day there. Very nice ambiance. Windy, nice sunset, moon & stars at night sambil ada orang hiburkan dengan mainan guitar yg sangat lembut dan calming.

Afterwards berendam dalam bath tub, syampoo rambut, hangout with friends @ the lounge while waiting for 12am to wish myself a happy 29th birthday. All in, perfect day.

Earlier, after check-in, masuk bilik and crash onto the huge bed (which I had all to myself), read a good book by the window, hangout at the balcony overlooking the garden and the sea.

That evening I went out to checkout what's around the resort. My room is conveniently located near the main building so I don't have to wait for the shuttle. Shady, because trees all over. Beware of monkeys, though - but they're friendly. Walked down to the beach, hanged out there for a while.

I was the only Malay there on my 1st day. And, I was alone. I can say all of their staff did a double take at me. Must be because I was alone, walking cheerfully, but then dressed so selekeh tak suitable nak jadi guest hotel kot. Jeans lipat2, selipar jepun, pasir dari beach penuh kat kaki dan jalan tanpa arah tujuan.

Almost everybody became my friend that day. They're very friendly. And they HAVE to ask if I'm there alone. By the time my friend checked in that night, I was already her tour guide for the hotel and every story the hotel staff told me. Ye, aku sangat kepoh. Segala benda aku nak tanya staff kat situ. Aku cakap dengan semua orang, except the AngMohs sebab aku bet diaorg ingat aku tak geti cakap omputih. Ekekeke..

Next day when I checked out, finally pakcik yg jaga shuttle to tanya, "Dari semalam saya nampak awak ni jalan sorang2. Awak memang sorang2 ke?". Hahaha.. And then came those younger guys barulah nak gelak2 sekali. Cet! Sepanjang aku kat situ takmau tegur ke, berkenalan ke.. apelah!

It's a walking distance between the resort and The Langkawi Cable Car or Panorama Langkawi Cable Car, plus shuttle boleh hantar for free.. so I went lah. Absolutely empty, unlike the last time I was there during CNY, had to beratur berjam2!. Anyway, of course the view was awesome. I stayed up there for like, an hour. Wanted to go on the bridge, but tak ramai orang takut jugak kan.. and it was SO hot! So I stayed under the shades just staring far into the ocean.

It's a great break for my brains. I love it up there - one of my favourite places in Malaysia. This is my 3rd time being up, and definitely will go again.

I made friends with a guy who worked there. Budak lagi, baru habis diploma. I was alone in the cable car and he wanted to accompany me up. So I said yea, why not. We chatted. Of course didn't exchange phone numbers. He looked kinda shy. Maybe he was looking for somebody fun, but unfortunately I'm kinda old and gave him a good talk about cari kerja baik, how to search for jobs and basically how to live life. Hahah.

Hanged out with friends afterwards @ Kuah. Didn't buy anything, tho. Kinda tired of chocolates, too young for Corelle and liquor is off limits. So, keluar masuk kedai tak beli apa2, cuma tanya2 soalan bodo2 kat tukang kedai jek. Padan muke diaorg. :P

Flew out @ 9.30pm and so damn tired this morning nak bangun gi keje. Nak MC tak sampai hati. Why oh why!

Emotions still in control having to face him today again after a whole weekend break.

Go, self. You can do it.

Pantai Leka, Muar.

2015-03-11T14:08:00.003+08:00

Caught up in laziness, I haven't written about my recent visit to Parit Jawa with cousin Nur, Fatin & Syami. Let me call it Exploring Muar - a mission I had when I first came to know about Pantai Leka from a friend of mine on Instagram. It's basically a fishing village where the air is filled with the smell of dried fish. Yikes!

Very relaxing environment with ah pek sitting down by the banks having conversation and families having drinks at the small shop nearby. Youngsters with huge cameras-hanging-down-their-necks positioning themselves in weird ways, trying to capture the "moment". Local youngsters of boys and girls flirting on their motorcycles (yea, you better snatch one while somebody wants you!) giggling over some so-called-funny-jokes. A lot of boats & herons, I guess. Sunset is beautiful, as always.

All in all, I'd say it's an OK place to go for a nice evening out with the family. For now I'm still loving Bandar Maharani's own Tanjung Ketapang.

Pantai Leka playground view from it's Menara Tinjau

On my next Exploring Muar activities, will head over to Sri Menanti - Pantai Mesra. Can't wait! But in the meantime, you might wanna browse some photos on Pantai Leka before you plan your trip down to Muar for a weekend-getaway.

Sungai Ramal Food Junction

2015-03-10T10:20:00.000+08:00

"Ko katne? Jom dinner burger bakar kat tmpt @pizlimw ckp tu. Aku stuck dlm jem kt tun razak ni"

... came a tweet from a friend yesterday evening, as if I just posted my location on his GPS. I was, too, stuck in a jam in KL Tower, heading towards Bukit Bintang. Obviously food comes first, so I cancelled my 7 o'clock appointment (which I was sure to NOT gonna make it, looking at the traffic) and agreed to food.

I'm kinda a sunset-sunrise-sky-clouds addict, so I just HAD to take pictures of the amazing sunset from the rest area beside Sungai Besi toll plaza. I could sit there forever & stare with a teardrop streaming down my face... but then came a Whatsapp message from him saying he's stomach is in need of an urgent attention, so we had to go back to his place first.

After powdering up, we were off to Sungai Ramal Food Junction. Ordered Satay Willy - I've heard good reviews about it & wanted to try. And very highly recommended grilled burger from Abang Burn.

I love the chicken satay from Willy, but not so much of the beef tho. The gravy is OK. I normally would slurp away the gravy or have a spoon just so I can have extra dip with the satay, but I do have a reputation to hold up to, ok. I can't show the public of how ugly I can get.

We waited a long while for our burgers to come. After about 20mins, I went to ask. Turned out our burgers were ready. It's just that they had our table number wrong. Oh well. Guess we had to munch the cold burger anyway. It was HUGE! Thickest meat I've ever had.

I was having trouble finishing it. My friend managed to finish it in a cool & calm manner. Or maybe he was just covering his act in public, we never know. By the time I had my 3rd bite, I was full. Like, seriously full. I was numb from the full-ness, it's like there's no oxygen that went thru my head, I was dizzy, blurry & I can't think straight.

It was ugly. But, satisfying nonetheless. I'm definitely going back :)

Bukit Tinggi, West Sumatra

2015-03-09T10:35:00.000+08:00

A post from March 2013.

I did a crazy thing this year. I got off from Jakarta & booked my next flight to Bukittinggi, Indonesia only 3 weeks apart. Well, to some (read: rich people), this is pretty normal, but for regular folk like me, this is kinda crazy. With the money, work & annual leave situation.

I didn't regret it. I enjoyed it thoroughly. It was a relaxing trip. Just sit around & hang out with my 2 buddies. No pressure. A stress-reliever.

Kawa daun, served in coconut shell

Of course, my favourite Indonesian travel agent (whom I have mentioned in my earlier post), Ade, brought us to this shop that sells coffee that is made from coffee leaves. And it tastes like tea - Kawa Daun, the name. To coffee lovers, this would be the most insulting kind of coffee that has ever existed but knowing the story behind it, you just have to forgive them & let it be.

It was during the olden days when Indonesia was still under the power of the Dutch. Their coffee beans were all being exported by the higher power & leaving them only with the leaves. And so, that's what the people use to make coffee.

Anyway, we had ours with tidbits - goreng pisang, cucur udang, tahu goreng with cili padi & another kuih which-I-don't-know-the-name-of. I kinda miss it tho. Eating & talking & laughing. Super fun time.

Later that night, Ade took us to his friend's wedding. So we had the chance to go to a Minangkabau wedding, in the land of Minangkabau! Yeay! Just do a Google on Minangkabau wedding ceremony & you'll see a whole lot of colorful pictures.

It was the fanciest pelamin I've ever seen. However, the reception itself was kinda dull. It was the 3rd & last day anyway. They had no music, people weren't talking loudly, and the food was not to my liking. Good social experience tho. And of course, my first time going to a wedding in t-shirt, jeans & red Converse.

I am definitely going back to Bukittinggi. I wanna try their mie ayam, murtabak, belut goreng, sate Padang & all the other food that I've missed out.

Apart from the food, I guess what I like most about Bukittinggi is the view. Very scenic, very green, fresh air & so relaxing. I love it there. And the weather is cool too.

Pantai Morib, Selangor

2015-03-06T13:58:00.000+08:00

This was a post of mine somewhere in 2012, taken from my old blog.

Yesterday was one fine Saturday, and I really wasn't gonna spend it sulking at home. So I googled Pantai Remis & Pantai Morib. Both are beaches that's nearby the city, about 1 1/2 hours away. Google search for images showed me that the crowd of people are less in Remis compared to Morib. Also, Morib has a nice, decent recreational park and so I made my choice to go there.

Wearing my new and oh-so-soft tshirt from Addini, I head out for my adventure (yea, rite!). But of course, 1st stop - lunch. At Wong Solo, Ampang. Ayam penyet is the best! After all those crispy chicken are safely inside my tummy, I continue on.

Ayam penyet

As I was closing in to Cheras, I decided to drop by Spermajalang's crib. To give him coffee from Bali & to say hi. Yeah, kinda missed him. Anyway it was kinda early to head out, I don't wanna have to sit in Morib alone while waiting for the sun to set - I needed a place to crash. After about an hour of watching TV & getting to know his soon-to-be-lawyer housemate who is also good looking & rich, I continue my journey.

I had my Google Maps on, but unfortunately I was brought to an unfamiliar area - somewhere in Putra Perdana, Puchong. On a nice evening & very much no traffic at all, I am glad I got lost. Driving around, seeing new things.

Almost decided to cancel my trip since it was already close to 6pm when I reach Putrajaya, but my feet just continued on stepping on the gas pedal. So there I was, driving through Dengkil, on towards Banting and finally reached Morib at 7pm.

The sun was absolutely amazing! I was so happy I got there in time before it disappears. There was a lot of people, but parking was easy anyway. I had about 20 minutes there - paid a visit to the loo & then walked slowly to a spot where I had a full view of the sun and the sea.

Masya Allah, it was so breathtakingly beautiful.

That's about it. I went home after Maghrib. The journey home was scary, coz it was very dark and not a lot of cars passing by. I didn't know the way, just went with the signboards - my phone battery was completely gone. After about an hour of driving in the middle of nowhere, I found myself at KLIA. Thank goodness!

So I drove home on my usual route. On the way, my stomach was growling, so I decided to visit Ely at work in Subang SS 15. A whole lot of food there, plus I needed some updates on our girl issues.

All in all, I had a great day. Very tiring, tho.

Superb Surabaya

2015-03-05T13:31:00.000+08:00

In 2009, with the flu still attached, I made it up Mount Bromo! Using the stairs lah. Hehe.. And, I went crazy.. shopping!! First off, Surabaya. Was very hot when we arrived. Mr. Ade (an accelent Indonesian travel agent of whom you can contact thru his Facebook page - just mention my name) welcomed us at the airport, with our tour guide, Wawan. Had Nasi Padang for lunch @ Silanggang Jaya Restaurant. After lunch, we headed straight to Cemoro Lawang. Halfway through the highway, we stopped by the roadside to see a village which was swallowed by lava.

On the way up to Cemoro Lawang, it gets cold. The view was breathtaking. The mist in the woods reminds me of Edward Cullen. I thought at any moment he would jump out of the mist. Along the roadside, there's fresh flowers and vegetables - mostly cabbage & potatoes, the main source of income for the villagers there. We stayed at a hostel called Cafe Lava. Very comfy bed, pillows and blanket! And yes, superb dishes too. We had Nasi Goreng Jawa, Soto Ayam, Nasi Campur dan Potato Cheese. I had a cabin all to myself, coz one of my friend can't make it for the trip.

The sunrise there is very early, compared to Malaysia. 6am there is like 8am in KL. So I woke up at 3am and took a bath in the chilling water, since the heater was broken. Hey, I don't mind - it was refreshing! And when I went out to wait for the driver, I saw a whole lot of stars. I could lie and stare at the stars for hours and hours! Anyway, 4am we took a jeep up to Mt. Penanjakan. It was very cold! Bought gloves for Rp15.000 and rent a jacket for Rp10.000. A lot of tourists there, most of them with high-end cameras. Around 5am++, I can see a yellow line of sunlight. It's a magnificent view! I am absolutely awed by it.

Then we went down and continued our journey to the sand-sea, to take up the 250 flight of stairs for Mt. Bromo's crater. The moment our jeep came into the parking area, we we're being chased by horses! Coz u have to walk from the jeep parking area to the stairs. It's about 2 - 3 km and we decided to take a horse instead. First time for all of us! My horse's name is Pablo. The climbing of the stairs was so tiring for somebody as unfit as me! We had at least 5 pit stops before reaching the top. Upon reaching the peak, I have to say it was worth every single drop of my sweat. The view was spectacular! Me & Ely sat at the cliff to enjoy the view, while Linda sat nearby the stairs which covered her from the blinding sunlight - although it was only 7am. I didn't wanna go down, but I figured if I stay too long up there, I might get burnt!

By 8.30am, we have reached our hostel for breakfast. I bought a souvenir t-shirt for myself and postcards for my cousin. We checked out early because we wanted to check-out Madakaripura Waterfall. Signboard says 5km. Do not believe the sign. I felt like it was more like, 105km. But we didn't go in because there was some climbing of the slippery rocks involved, plus, there was a naked man taking a bath welcoming us. Scary! You may read the information for this waterfall from this Indonesian travel website.

We headed back to Surabaya, check in hotel. Quds Royal Hotel. The tallest building in the area. Interior is like a castle, but only 3stars. And the food? Superb! And cheap, of course. That evening we went to ITC - International Trade Centre. Where we had dinner @ the foodcourt and do a little bit of shopping. We had Nasi Timbel, and not forgetting Es Teler. I requested to go around the city centre, but it was too far away and we got lost!

That night, me & Ely ordered room service for more food! We ordered Fish & Chip, Pisang Keju & a very nice-looking, and excellent tasting Orange juice. So far the best drink I've had there.

The next morning, we had breakfast at the. I tried every single food and drink available. Nasi Goreng, Ayam, Soup, Sayur Campur, Roti Bakar with Strawberry Jam & Chocolate Rice, Pancake, Omelette.. I ate 'em all! After check-out, we went straight to Plaza Jambatan Merah. We read in a forum that this is the best shopping center. And yes, all too cheap to even imagine! We were expecting to buy "kebaya" for RM50, which we thought was the cheapest. And when we got there, we found a set of "kebaya" selling for Rp35.000. Equals to RM12! We went into most of the shops there, showing my skills on bargaining and finally came out satisfied. Still, with some extra money in the pocket.

We treated our driver & guide for their help. Had Nasi Kebuli, which was good, and then went straight back to the airport.

Surabaya was an excellent experience for me, especially Mount Bromo. I've been thinking of going back there - hopefully soon! But this time I'm not gonna ride a horse. I think I'll just walk. Am afraid with all my extra weight, the horse might not make it uphill.

Saigon

2015-03-04T17:21:00.001+08:00

Ever since I saw Anthony Grey's book "Saigon" on my cousins' book shelf, about 20 years ago, I've always wondered what it meant. And when I know what it means, I've kept it in my heart that one day I will set my foot in that foreign land. Of course, thanks to AirAsia and adulthood, I have achieved what I set for. Even if it takes me 20 effing years! And I have to say, I enjoyed it very much. I enjoyed my companions, I enjoyed the food, the culture, the language (although I was cursed every second I spent in their markets) & most of all, I enjoyed the drinks. We spent 4 days 3 night, which to me was not enough. Should've stayed there for a whole month so we can go to Hanoi or go bicycling at the countryside & maybe take a flight out to Pnom Penh for a while. But then again, I don't have a gold card. So I should just suck it up & shut up.

Anyway, the first thing you'll notice when you enter Ho Chi Minh City is of course, the motorcycles. There's not an inch of the road which is not occupied by these motorcycles. And get this - they have the cutest helmet ever! It's like a cap, protecting your head from scratch and not from having it crushed to the ground. It's adorable. And the second thing you'll notice is the wires. Oh my goodness I can't even begin how to describe the complexity of the wiring in Ho Chi Minh City. I truly believe it is the most complicated in the world.

* Try to have one of 'em short circuited & have it on fire, see what will happen.

We pre-booked our hotel through AirAsiaGo.com, selecting Saigon Hotel Mini 6 as our shelter for the whole 4 days. The price was RM63 per night, and on top of that, there's a 20% off the total price. Thanks to a promotion they were having. The hotel is located in Bui Vien Street, somewhere in District 1. This district is the central urban district of Ho Chi Minh City (information thanks to Wikipedia). This street is rather calm during the day, and turned hectic at night because of the bars, pubs, clubs & seriously cheap booze.

All of us don't drink alcoholic beverages, so we found a small stall along a busy small lane that sells a helluva good, refreshing fruit juice. A large cup costs up 20.000 VND which is equivalent to around RM3. We had this drink about 2-3 times a day, and by the end of our trip we became best friends with the auntie that sells the drink.

Our hotel is about 10 minutes away (on foot) from the infamous Ben Thanh market. Crossing the road, at first, was a super hard task. There's screaming involved. The thing about crossing the road is, you just have to brace yourself & cross. They will honk at you, but just to warn. Chances are, you won't get hit at all - they go by at a slow speed, and they are very skillful at avoiding pedestrians crossing.

Just opposite of Ben Thanh market is Nguyen An Ninh Street, a.k.a Malay Street. They don't speak Vietnamese or English here - they speak Malay. And yes, majority of Malaysians who love to shop at Ho Chi Minh will stay here. There's 2 halal food restaurant, side by side. The most famous one is Hjh Basiroh. We experienced our first Pho here. It was to die for! The meat was tender, the chili was hot, the portion was generous. Price is around 75.000 VND.

Kampung Melayu, a restaurant next to Hjh Basiroh, served more choice of food, with a protected & air-conditioned environment in which you have to pay for by their expensiveness in food & drinks.

For Muslims, I would say that you'll have to spend more on food. You'll be spending around RM15 per meal, for food and drink. So I am thankful that we have a Circle K across our hotel & auntie's fruit juice back in Bui Vien Street.

Ben Thanh market - my first impression : oh my, a whole lot of shops! Whatever things you wanna look for, you'd probably find it in this market. Well, except for electrical goods, I guess.

We went lost, of course, the first time being in the market. There were pulling & touching involved once you enter. At first I was kinda angry with people constantly touching me, but after some time I got used to it. Bargaining is difficult. Sometimes they don't understand you & most of the time you don't understand them. The language barrier. There is another market, Binh Tay, located around 20 mins away (by car) from Ben Thanh - in Chinatown. Much cheaper, much more aggressive pulling, touching & cursing involved. I don't see any westerners here, probably to them Ben Thanh is already cheap.

So Farah & I, the ones who do most of the bargaining, are being cursed by them at all times. Yes, I'm pretty sure they curse us for bargaining too cheap & walked away when we don't get the price we wanted. Us girls are interested in the materials. They sell mostly cotton. From English to Japan, from viscose to chiffon. Only half day in Vietnam & we've bought ourselves at least 3 - 6 pairs.

Above are only some of the materials that I bought. Mind you there's another 12 pairs that is missing from the picture. Those costs me RM23 each. And the picture below, I took from a shop that sells ready-made baju kurung with a heavy duty beads going on.

Haggling is fun, but when you have to deal with 3 different currencies, it becomes a headache. We haggle in Ringgit Malaysia, but we only have Vietnamese Dong & USD. So you have to have a calculator for the conversion of currencies. And there'll always a plus minus price over what you've settled for. Apart from buying materials, you can also make suits. It is said to be nicely sewn & comfortably worn. See sample below:

We didn't only shop, we did some sightseeing & touring as well. Mekong river was done on my birthday, after a surprise birthday party the night before. I was seriously caught off guard, and so below are the only pictures that's appropriate for public viewing, if you know what I mean.

So back to Mekong river trip, it costs us USD35 which includes pickup at hotel, breakfast, boat ride & tour with English-speaking guide, lunch, market stops & return to hotel. To me the price was OK, considering the food are all halal & there's only 6 of us in the group, so we're comfortably seated. Our Mekong tourist guide, I believe is a friend of Jack Dorsey's. She should be the blue bird representing Twitter.

The next day we walked through the city. The sun, I believe, was just an inch over our heads. We were sweaty, thirsty. We got burned, and yet we still walk. I enjoy walking, so I would say that I enjoy our walk through District 1 very much. Along the way we stopped at an air-conditioned mall to shop (again), bought stamps at the post office, buy drinks, take pictures, get cheated by the coconut-drink seller & get our sweat on.

I enjoy getting lost in the city of the unknown.

And by the time we reach the back of the Notre Dame Cathedral, everybody was super tired. I'm actually afraid to ask them to walk with me around the corner (because I want to look at the cathedral from the front), they would chop me up & eat me for lunch. So we took a cab home. When we got back to the hotel, one of the girls from reception knocked on my door & handed me a birthday cake. They are the sweetest! So I took pictures with them :)

The next morning, Farah & Rahmat went to Ben Thanh early to do some last minute shopping. I stayed at the hotel, waiting for our tailor to come. The thing about Vietnamese is, if you make an appointment with them, always put at least an hour early of the time that you want. Because they will be at least an hour late. This happened 50% of the time.

So while waiting for Lan, the tailor (a woman), Omar &I had some alone time. Finally. Nah, just kidding. We went out to get breakfast at Highlands Coffee. It was difficult to find a halal place to eat in Bui Vien area, so we just entered & ordered tuna sandwich.

So after our morning runs, we settled down in 1 room to wait for 6pm to go to the airport. 4 of us, 3 of which is big-sized. 7 bags, excluding handbags. Cramped in 1 small room. So us girls stayed on the bed while the guys in whichever positions they were comfortable in.

And thank goodness we did not run out of money & luggage size is not over the limit. Mine & Omar totaled up to 41.5 kg while Farah & Rahmat was around 37kg.

Safely arrived in Malaysia with smiles on our tiring faces. Thank you to my 3 friends who threw me the party & helped me throughout the journey. I love you guys!

We'll be back, Ho Chi Minh. That is a promise.

Lexis Hotel Port Dickson

2015-03-03T04:30:00.000+08:00

I was in Port Dickson recently for a weekend break. Decided to walk in to Lexis Hotel Port Dickson and try my luck if there's any room available - and it did!

RM580 inclusive of breakfast for an Executive Water Chalet. For 1 night. The spacious room comes with a very comfortable king bed, a day bed, a spacious jacuzzi that fits 2 & a balcony.

Other plus points about this hotel is that it each room comes with an iron & board, a safe & an umbrella - which are rare. Normally we will have to request for these things.

Room service is good - from the point of the variety of menus, time of food being delivered & presentation. The taste of the food, however, is only an "OK" to me. Our lunch as captured above, cost us RM82.

The beach is clean, and that's all I can say about it.

We did't jump into the swimming pool, bcoz of the many families with young children hanging out there & the pool size is not as big as it may seem in the pictures.

There's kareoke center, gym & other sports activities that you can try out - with a price, that is. Since we're single travelers who just want to chill out, we decided to just sit back & enjoy the sun.

One of the must-do thing if you're staying here is catching the sunset. Walk along the chalet area until the very far end where you can get an awesome view.

At night we went to Port Dickson town to check out the Waterfront area. It's still new, I guess, but there's a lot of restaurants to choose from. Fast food, western, Italian, Korean, Japanese, Thai, and the list goes on. There's a Starbucks nearby Maybank. And then there's another Starbucks with drive-thru just nearby.

Apart from eating, I don't think there's much to do there. And the town is pretty much quiet after 9pm anyway.

For breakfast, choice of food wasn't bad at all. Of course they have nasi lemak - every hotel in Malaysia does - with different kinds of sambal. Then they have confectioneries, porridge, western, salad, fruits & cereals. There's about 5 types of juices if you're not a coffee/tea drinker.

All in, it was a very good stay. From the helpfulness & friendliness of the hotel staff to the cleanliness of the hotel grounds.

So if you're in PD & looking for a not-too-expensive hotel to wind down, be sure to check out Lexis Hotel. It is formerly known as The Legend Water Chalet - in case your GPS can't find it (like mine did).

It's fun for family & comfy for couples. For more info, log on to lexispd.com . Alternately, you can look for offers to this hotel in Agoda website.

Swiss-Garden Resort & Spa Kuantan

2015-03-02T23:58:00.002+08:00

Every year I'd plan a trip during my birthday. Unfortunately this year, it was cancelled - because the situation in Bangkok was uneasy. Plus my friend & I just got back from another trip earlier, and we were both busy with work.. bla bla bla.. So I opt to go somewhere in Malaysia, within reasonable driving distance. Swiss-Garden Resort & Spa Kuantan came to mind as I haven't been to the East Coast for quite some time. I need keropok lekor & nasi dagang.

Swiss-Garden Resort & Spa Kuantan

I booked my room earlier on Agoda so checking in was smooth, altho there were a slight of a crowd at the lobby. Oh btw, I love the lobby - it's so spacious and airy. A lot of seats where you can just chill out. We stayed for 2 nights, which cost us RM680.92 for a Deluxe Room including breakfast. The room was spacious & clean but the condition is a bit old. And if you plan to use the water heater, please check it out first because ours was rusty.

Our room

We had ourselves a single bed each, and bed condition is only an "OK" for me. The bathroom was a bit small, tho. Bathtub can barely fit me in, not in width but in length - and I am short.

The small bathtub

Sink

The toilet

It was about a 3-hour drive from KL in the middle of the day with the hot sun and all.. so by the time we checked in, we were starving! Since I was the only driver & was too tired to drive out for food, we had dinner at their restaurant - The Garden Terrace.

My western food - beef

Local nasi goreng

Food was awesome. No, it's not because we were super hungry but it was actually good. We had nasi goreng & some-western-food-I-can't-recall-the-name. Service was not so good - slow; but then again it was 3pm (after lunch hour) and I believe the staff are all tired. Let's just give'em a break, shall we? This cost us about RM70++.

Moving on to the beach. Oh before that - the walkway. Full of greens, it's so soothing to the eyes. And again, it's airy.

Green open field towards the beach

As for the beach itself, may not be as "awesome" as some of the other beaches in the area, but it was great for me. Mainly because it was not a public beach, so it wasn't crowded. The water is not so blue but a beach's a beach - and I take it as it is.

The beach

Beach activities

An almost-empty beach

Sunset behind the hotel

That night we had dinner at their Chinese restaurant - The Blossom. We had lemon chicken, dried chili chicken, broccoli & can't recall others, it was one of the dinner sets that they offer. And it came with a pot of chrysanthemum tea (with the flowers) & it's refillable. This cost us around RM80++.

Hotel lobby

After dinner we hanged out at the lobby. There's a flow of water, it was soothing & cooling - I loved it. It looked out to the beach, of course. Since it was night time, all we can see was lights from the lamppost.

Sunrise @ the beach

So anywho, the next day we checked out the sunrise. And after breakfast we headed towards Kuala Terengganu. Just because I missed Pasar Payang.

Terengganu is mostly occupied with Muslims, so on a Friday afternoon it was seriously deserted. We had trouble finding food for lunch, so we stuffed ourselves with keropok lekor & headed back to Kuantan.

Pantai Batu Buruk

We took the beach road, to get some scenery. Earlier my GPS directed us through a new highway towards Kuala Terengganu, which was such a turn off! So we had our stops - 1st was at Pantai Batu Buruk.

The beach was nicer here than in Balok Beach, Beserah (where the hotel is). I was the only one who went near the water. You know Malaysians, we have a lot of sun on a lot of days, so none of us wants to expose ourselves to the afternoon sun.

Shop along the road

Took a few snaps of pics & continued the journey. 2nd stop was at a shop by the roadside. We were getting hungry so we bought some sata. There was a small pondok behind the shop for us to sit, eat & enjoy the view and sound of the waves from the South China Sea.

My fav picture throughout the trip

Above is a picture of the pondok, earlier occupied by an old man who walked away as the kid in white & his family approched. It is one of my favorite picture from my entire collection.

Afterwards we drove again, but about an hour away from hotel, I started to feel dizzy from hunger. So we made another pit stop by the roadside where a stall was selling nasi dagang. A plate cost us RM3, a price you can never get in KL - but the portion was a bit small tho. Enough to just get me going again.

Later that night, it was time for room service since we were still hungry. (Yes, I could eat a horse & it can actually fit in my huge tummy). We ordered 3 dishes - Fish & Chips, Beef burger & Mee goreng. Plus 2 cans of Coke & it cost us around RM80++ if I'm not mistaken. Again, the food was excellent.

Random guy in the water

We spent the next morning in the waters before heading back to KL. It was a good thing that we checked out on a Saturday because the crowd was getting bigger. There were a whole lot more families with young children & there was a seminar for Petronas staff.

So all in, it was an OK stay. I may come again if there's no other places that I can go to. Much more suitable if you're bringing a family instead of on a couples/single trip.

Check out the Swiss-Garden Resort & Spa Kuantan website to get more details.